Handy Hardware eliminates executive position

Lynn Bradley, senior director, retail development, is out at Handy Hardware Wholesale, a cost-cutting move according to the Houston-based co-op.

Handy Hardware Wholesale, which filed for bankruptcy protection in January, eliminated the position of “senior director, retail development,” as part of a cost-reduction plan, according to Morrie Aaron, president of MCA Financial Group. MCA is Handy’s financial advisory firm that specializes in restructuring.

It was Bradley who signed an initial letter to members announcing the co-op’s bankruptcy filing. In the letter, he asked for patience and support from members. He also wrote: “There are no plans to liquidate or shut down, and we don’t even see that as option.”

Aaron added the co-op still intends to wrap up its bankruptcy situation by late June, with the end result being either the co-op remains an independent firm or emerges from bankruptcy through an acquisition.

Until August 2010, Bradley had been chief financial officer and senior VP sales for Handy, but he resigned from those posts after the co-op became aware of a past SEC action involving Bradley. A settlement ended with Bradley neither admitting nor denying charges, and included an agreement for him not to serve as an officer or director of a publicly traded company.

At the time, Handy said: Bradley’s performance while at Handy was “highly beneficial to the company and to our members.”